Leader in Me creator to keynote 2012 Annual Dinner
This year’s chamber Annual Dinner promises to be a very special one with the emphasis on the chamber's partnership with Chillicothe City Schools and FranklinCovey's The Leader in Me initiative. Set for Tuesday, Jan. 31 at Ohio University-Chillicothe’s Shoemaker Center, the dinner’s featured speaker is Muriel Summers, the founder of the initiative more than a decade ago at her school in Raleigh, NC.
In addition to Summers, the dinner continues the tradition of a being a multimedia show with big screen presentations, thanks to the generosity of Horizon Telcom, along with updates on chamber activities and the announcement of the newest Entrepreneur of the Year. The social hour begins at 6, the dinner at 7 and the program around 8.
Summers adopted Dr. Stephen Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” as a foundation for her A.B. Combs magnet school in Raleigh more than a decade ago. “By recognizing that each student possesses unique gifts and talents, and building on students’ strengths rather than their weaknesses, Muriel and the other faculty guide students at A.B. Combs to continually achieve high levels of academic performance year after year,” according to her biography. The school has been recognized as a National Elementary School of the Year, a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence and a National School of Character by various organizations.
Allen Elementary on Plyley’s Lane accepted the chamber’s offer more than two years ago to implement The Leader in Me starting with the 2010-2011 school year. Principal Jason Fife and his staff hope to achieve the designation as a Lighthouse School following the 2012-2013 school year. Worthington Elementary introduced The Leader in Me in September with the chamber’s help. Tiffin and Mt. Logan elementaries as well as the sixth grade at Western received a state grant and plan to introduce the initiative by the end of this month. Chillicothe is the first in Ohio to adopt it on a district-wide basis.
In addition to the more than $70,000 contributed by chamber members to The Leader in Me, the Annual Dinner is an excellent opportunity for other chamber members to become involved. Here are some possibilities:
Bring an educator to dinner: While chamber members and their guests will pay the normal $45 per ticket, a special offer to school teachers, principals, other staff and PTA-PTO members and their guests of $25 is being made to encourage their attendance to hear directly from the creator of The Leader in Me. Invite your friends in education and think about paying their way. Your support would be greatly appreciated and recognized.
Celebrate one of the 7 Habits: Sponsor a table for $125 and decorate in a way to illustrate one of the 7 Habits.
Celebrate a school: Sponsor a table for $125 and have one of the participating schools help you decorate it. We’ll put you in touch with the right person. Each table will have eight people.
Call the chamber at 702-2722 to learn if seats are still available..
Business After Business
The third Wednesday of each month from 5-7 p.m., chamber members and their guests gather at a member's location to unwind for the day, learn more about the host and catch up on the latest local news and events and meet the chamber's newest members. Appetizers and beverages are always available and door prizes go to those holding the winning tickets. Click here to learn the site for the next BAB and to register to attend.
SCORE chapter available to help your business
One-on-one counseling from those who have been there and done that is now available to small business owners in the region. And it’s all free of charge and confidential. The South Central Ohio SCORE chapter has trained counselors at the ready to assist owners with issues such as finance, getting started, human resources, physical plant operations, etc. To get started, call 779-0845 and leave your information. A counselor will be back to you within a couple days. Or go to www.southcentralohioscore.org and sign up online.
